This article reviews the use of detergents and fertilizers in agricultural activities that lead to water pollution, the consequences for the environment and public health. Currently, sustainable food production demands the use of clean technologies that avoid the excessive use of non-degradable detergents with poly-phosphates and sulphate as agents tense-active in livestock holdings and fertilizers, with high nitrogen and phosphorus contents in field crops, briefly discusses the regulation of phosphate and total phosphorus in wastewater and advocates the use of biotechnology as a decontaminant measure of chemical substances and the use of biodegradable detergents in order to avoid water pollution and environmental deterioration.